Garden Adventures with Regatta

You don’t always have to go too far for a little adventure, simply head to the back garden for a night of camping! Camping in your garden is a simple yet fun way of keeping yourself entertained, whether it’s with your children or your partner. It’ll give you the thrill of camping without the cost and more importantly, you don’t have to leave the house! There’s no stress of having to be quiet past a certain time, no hassle of finding the ‘perfect location’. All you need to do is set up your tent and you’re good to go.

If you’re planning on an adventure closer to home, here’s everything you need to know about camping in your garden:

Garden Camping Checklist

Garden Tent

Even though you’re only in the back garden, you’ll still need a good quality tent – this is the UK after all and we all know how changeable the weather can be! If it’s just the kids having an outdoor sleepover, or you and your partner having a date night camp then a two-man pop up tent will be fine, however, if you’re planning a family adventure then you’ll need something with extra room.

Since you’re only a stone’s throw from your house, you could easily just use your duvet and pillows for sleeping. But if you want to make this more of an authentic camping experience, get cosy under the stars in a sleeping bag. For a little extra luxury, an airbed is the perfect excuse for a comfy nights sleep.

Back Garden Firepit

Here is an easy way to make a campfire in your garden. All you’ll need is a fairly large plant pot (I’m sure you’ll have one in your garden), Charcoal, Lighter Fluid, Aluminium Foil and a Lighter. If it has a hole in the bottom more oxygen will enter the pot (like a charcoal grill) allowing the fire to burn for longer.

Firstly, place the foil on top of the plant pot, then fill it up with charcoal and drizzle some lighter fluid. Finally, light the charcoal and once it starts to become white you can begin roasting or simply keep yourself warm.

Garden Camping Food Ideas

It’s important to have camping snacks and treats whilst you’re in your garden, this will make it feel like a real camping experience. Why not try our Campfire Bread on a Stick recipe or our Pancake recipe. If you’re craving something sweet then give this classic s’mores recipe a go:

S’mores Recipe

Prep Time: 3 mins Cook Time: 5 mins Serves: Many

Ingredients:

Digestive biscuits (or any biscuits you have in your cupboard)

Chocolate of your choice broken into pieces (large enough to cover the biscuit)

Large marshmallows

Utensils:

Stripped wood sticks or metal skewers

Campfire/firepit

Method:

Take one biscuit and place the chocolate of your choice in the centre.

Put a marshmallow on the stick and hold it over the fire until roasted. Turn the stick until the outside of the marshmallow is golden brown and just starting to get mushy.

Take your toasted marshmallow (still on the stick), and lay it on the side of the biscuit with the chocolate.

Place another biscuit on top of the hot marshmallow, pressing down firmly enough to pull out the stick.

When the s’more is fully assembled, let it sit for a few seconds. You will see the hot marshmallow melt the chocolate, now squish the s’more between your fingers and eat it. Don’t forget to lick the “marshmallow goo” that slides out the sides.

Garden Fun and Games

Make sure you prepare plenty of activities to keep the kids entertained and stop them being tempted to go inside to watch TV or play on computer games. They may even be able to connect to the Wi-Fi from the garden, so perhaps you could all leave your devices indoors for the night.

There are lots of fun garden games that you can play, for example you could organise a scavenger hunt in the garden, or if it’s a hot day then why not make a splash in a paddling pool. At night time why not gather round a fire for some campsite stories?

Outdoor Clothing

With the British weather being so unpredictable it is vital that you make sure you have the correct clothing. Just because the evening starts off warm doesn’t mean that it will stay warm throughout the night. Keep yourself toasty with a fleece or some extra blankets to hand to wrap up in.

Camping in the Garden Safety

Even though you’re only camping in your back garden, it’s important that children feel safe during the night, especially first-time campers and younger children. Give each child a torch in case they need to make their way back into the house.